Education is a Building Block for life
Author: Audrey Wood
Illustrator: Don Wood
Publication Date: 1987
Publisher: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich
A mother leaves her seven children at home with instructions to not let anyone in the house or to play with the fire. She goes to the store to get them each something they want because they have been such good children. When a witch comes and offers them gold to light her pipe they let her in and she casts a spell on them that turns them each into a different type of food. The witch is getting ready to eat all the food and the mother comes in demanding her children back. The witch only agrees to let the mother have her children back if she can guess which food is each of her children. The mother ends up using her instincts and matches the food on the table to the items that each of her children wanted at the market. The children are all changed back and then run home away from the witch.
This is a fictional fable story about a witch casting a spell on a family of children. The illustrations are very detailed and children are able to use their imagination and follow the story through these pictures. The illustrations allow children to identify unfamiliar words and help them figure out the context of the story. Both parents and teachers can point to the specific items in the pictures and help the students identify what they are. Another lesson that can be learned through this book is the importance of listening to what an adult says to you. Both teachers and parents can discuss why rules are made and what can occur if the rules are not followed. The children’s names in the book are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday and through reading this book there can be repetition and review of the days of the week. There can also be a lesson through the matching of the children when they are food and the items that the mother picks up from the store.
Title: The Honest to Goodness Truth
Author: Patricia C. McKissack
Illustrator: Giselle Potter
Publication Date: 2000
Publisher: Atheneum/Anne Schwartz Books
When a girl Libby is caught lying to her mother she learns that she should never tell a lie again and only speak the honest-to-goodness truth. She decides to tell her friends only the truth. The truths consist of telling the teacher about a friend who did not do his homework, telling another group of friends that their friend has a hole in her sock at church on Sunday, and telling one of her neighbors that her garden has a lot of weeds. She ends up pointing out truthful embarrassing things to each of her friends and they all end up getting mad at her. At the end of the story after figuring out why all of her friends are mad at her, she learns that sometimes it is important to tell the truth and other times it is important to not point out a truth that could embarrass someone else. She learns the different between the right way and the wrong way to tell the truth.
This story teaches children that lying is wrong. However, through Libby’s experiences we can point out that while the truth is important and you should never tell a lie, there are appropriate ways and situations to tell the truth. Parents and teachers can discuss what a lie is and how sometimes not pointing out the truth is more appropriate. For instance children often tell on each other during class and this is often very disruptive. A teacher can discuss appropriate situations to tell the teacher and other situations that children should handle on their own. Teachers and parents can discuss with their children that there are subtle ways of telling the truth and that you do not have to lie to not hurt someone’s feelings. This can also help children with friendship and sibling situations as well.
